Kelvin Rivera was a main character in Eden Rising. Kelvin was a nervous young man and a young deputy working under Tom Snyder. Kelvin was the older brother figure to Ash, who Kelvin and his father Javier took in during the apocalypse. Kelvin's sudden rise to power while living in the Last Chance Society led to him abandoning his friends. Upon feeling guilt when hearing that Ash and Declan were being put to death by people in the Last Chance Society, Kelvin redeemed himself by throwing their judge, jury and executioner off the roof of the church clocktower. In his effort, Kelvin was entangled in ropes hanging from the tower, snapping his neck in the fall. Ash solemnly put Kelvin down with an arrow to the head.

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Despite his soft spoken nature and child-like fascination with police work, Kelvin proved himself to be a more than capable leader when the situation presented itself, quick to make snap judgment calls on instinct. Kelvin's primary motivation seemed to be gratification from his superiors whether it be from his father or from his mentor Tom, rather than greed, always eager to please them.

However, when he was offered the opportunity to carry around a shiny new Sheriff's badge and be a leader himself, Kelvin's hidden lust for power became apparent. Despite his testy, shaky sense of loyalty and his cowardice, in the end, Kelvin put family first even if it cost him his own life.

After his father Javier adopted a young loner named Ash, Kelvin has felt increased pressure to impress his father, feeling like a failure in comparison to Ash, who is good at many things that he isn't. Kelvin starts training to be a cop like his father, and makes it onto Glenley's police force.

Kelvin is new to the force, a deputy under the tutelage of one of Javier's fellow sheriffs, Tom Snyder. With the town being overtaken and burnt down by The General, Kelvin manages to take up a secondary leadership role under Tom among the ragtag group of survivors. He has a bit of a temper on him though, and is prone to making hot-headed rookie mistakes. He and Ash are eager to build up the non-existent relationship between them in the wake of Javier's death. He arrives at the Tulsa International Airport in hopes of rescue and being brought to Eden with the rest of his group of survivors at season's end.

Tensions explode at the airport after Tom's daughter Darla is bitten. Tom and company disappear on a scavenge for medical supplies, and an anxious and annoyed-at-being-left-out Kelvin wanders away from the airport to look for them. In the forest, he runs into Gareth, whom he fights with. They both end up meeting Declan, a fellow survivor who left the group on his own after his dark past as a former convict came out, and Bray, an elderly survivor. They are both brought to the Last Chance Society, a post-apocalyptic religious commune of survivors, where people have taken refuge in a suburban neighborhood and the community's towering monastery.

Admittedly tired of playing second fiddle to Ash, Kelvin is taken in by the Last Chance Society as their new sheriff. With his newfound power, Kelvin ignores his friends when they arrive back but in the end begins to see the errors in his ways and attempts making things right and helping them sneak out. His plans self-destruct and Ash and Declan are put to death in an attempt by John Smith to ease tensions in the conflict over leadership between himself and Father Warden. Kelvin fights with a guard that plans on killing Ash and Declan, and ends up getting one of the ropes meant for Ash and Declan wrapped around his neck. In a final sacrifice, he throws himself and the guard over the edge of the bell tower to save Ash and Declan's lives. His hanging body ends up reanimating, and the rope snaps. Ironically, Kelvin ends up protecting Ash and the others post-mortem as he bites and eats a man that planned on murdering them. Ash takes his crossbow and shoots zombie Kelvin in the head, putting him out of his misery.

Although Kelvin did not physically appear, his death had a ripple effect on the relationship between Ash and Tom. Recognizing that Kelvin died a hero, Ash learned to forgive and forget while Tom talked a lot of shit about Kelvin, which angered Ash. This was a part of the reason why Ash moved out of his suite at Eden with Tom.

Kelvin's role in the second season represented Judas Iscariot, a disciple of Jesus Christ in the Christian religion who betrayed Jesus.

Their fates are similar as well. Both ended up hanging themselves out of guilt for what they've done, but Kelvin's suicide had heroic undertones to it as he ended up saving Ash and Declan's lives in the end.